Rack



oct. 19, 192e.

F. D. BRODE'FHCK RACK 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Jan. 2, 1926 J2? vena?"FRANK Q BfiouER/CK I Oa. 19 1925.

1,603,742 F. D. BRODERCK RACKy iled Jan. 2, 1926 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patentedoci. 19, 1926;

i tenant ra'rsnr rica FRANK D. BRODERICK, OF MINNEAOLIS, MINNESOTA..

RACK.

Application led January 2, 1926. Serial No. 78,890.

This invention relates to supporting racks and the primary object is toprovide a novel, etlicient ttnd practical construction of rack which isparticularly designed and adapted for use in supporting gasoline,kerosene and other fuel containers, 'in places such as grocery stores,where fuel of such nature is customarily kept in one ,Wallon containersfor sale to the public. llurther and more lo specific objects willbedisclosed in the cours@ of the followingl specilication, referencebeing' had to the accompanying, drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the rck, l5 showing three fuelcontainers as supported therein.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional detail view showing` a portion of thelower tier of the rack.

Fig'. 3 is a detail sectional elevation as on the line 3-3 in Fig. 2.

Fig'. 4 is an enlarged detail perspective view of one of the traysemployed in the rack.

Referring` to the drawings more particularly and by reference characters5 designates the front uprights or standards and (i the rear uprights orstandards of the rack, all of said uprights being rigidly connected by alower rectangular frame 7 and an upper rectangular frame 8. rlhe frameis spaced from the floor to permit the entrance thereunder of acontainer 9, and the lower ends of the uprights 5 and 6 serve as `legsfor the entire nek. The rack members 5, 6, 7 and 8 are all constructedof angle iron so as to give the rack substantial rigidity. The rack isfurther braced by inclined rods or bars 10, on all four sides, exceptthat the space between the standards 5 and the. front edges of the upperand lower frames and 8 is left open so as to permit ready access to thelower shelf or frame.

Running` from front to back and secured to the frame 7 is a series ofangle iron bars 11, arranged in pairs, the bars of each pair havingtheir lower or horizontal Hang-es opposed so as to form slides orsupporting channels for trays 12, one of which is clearly illustrated inFig. 1. Similarly constructed and arranged bars 13 are secured in theupper frame 8 and serve as similar supports for trays 14, which are inall material respects like the trays 12.

Secured under and extending` transversely tents when so desired.

rilhe trays. 12 and 1li are lconstructed of sheet metal and aresubstantially rectangu- 5 lar in shape. rllhe sides of each tray areprovided with angular flange supports 20, and these in turn are recessedas at 21 so that the fuelfcontainer will be properly seated and so thatthe leakage therefrom will not run oil' the ends of the Hannes but willbe directed to the bottom of the Hay. @ne end of the bottom portion ofthe tray is inclined, as at 22, so that the tray need not be tilted veryfar in order to vbe 'drained into the trough 15 (or 17), and the endwall 23, which continues from the upper ledge ofthe bottom portion 22,is provided with a groove 24 and a lip 25 which receives the overflowand directs it to the trough below.

Before describing' the op ration or use of the device as above set forthmention will iirst be made ofthe difficulties it is intended to overcomeand the advantages it is designed to obtain.

Fuel retailers such as grocery men and other store keepers are. requiredto have on hand fuel in small quantities for home consumption, and suchquantities are usually handled in gallon cans of the type shown inFig. 1. These cans are customarily placed upon the floor or on suchsuitable supports as may be found convenient. When emptied by the storekeeper or when returned empty by his customers they are usually setaside until a fuel tank truck arrives from the fuel dealer, at whichtime the empty cans are refilled.

lt frequently happens that a can or Container leaks, and unlessimmediately discovered such leakage may result in considerable loss yoffuel, and also endangers the premises by escaping over the floor. Andwith a large group of cans in stock it is very difficult under anycircumstances to locate The container 9 is prothe can which is leaking,so that it may be returned to the fuel dealer for credit and repair. lltis also frequently the ease, especially in cold climates, that when acan is l(illed with cold fuel, Ioutside of the store, and is thenbrought in, the warmer temperature will cause an expansion of the fuelwhich results in overflowing of the eontainer, and therefore makes itdil'licult to determine whether the can is overflowing by 'pansion or ifit is actually leaking. ln either event fuel. so ef'sealiing `is wasted.

ln the rack as shown in Fig. l ofthe drawing have provided means forsupporting twelve one gallon containers of fuel. lt is of course obviousthat l do not limit myself to this number, nor do place any specificlimitations on the size of the rack or the number of tiers or frames7-8.

'.llhe trays l2 and 1i are preferably arranged in pairs, i. e., twodeep, and their inner or adjacent ends are arranged over the troughs l5and 17. As the empty cans arc relilled they are placed in the rack, onecan in each tray, where they remain until removed to supply the trade.New, if fuel escapes from a can by virtue of expansion, as aboveindicated, it merely runs down into the tray where it remains untilremoved. If there. is a slow leak in the can, however, the tray under itwill soon Fill up, causing the overflow to run down the groove 24 andthe lip 25, into the trough 15 (or 17) and from there conducted by 4thepipe 1G to the container' 9 from which .it may be emptied and utilizedwherever desired.

It will thus be seen that none of the escaping fuel is wasted, no damageis ydone by such fuel, and the storekeeper can at a glance into the'tray quickly determine whether or not the can supported by it is leakyor not. If anv of the trays are found to contain fuel the can supportedby it can be disposed of as may be found necessary, and the tray maythen be readily emptied by merely tilting it so that the fuel will runover the passage 24 and into the trough beneath it.

lt is understood that various and suitable modilieations may be made inIthe general design and structural details of the in vention as hereinshown and above described, provided, however, that such modilicatiouscome within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Having now therefore lfully shown and described my invention what lclaim to be new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

l.. A rack of the character described coniprising a suitable framestructure having tiers of tray supports, trays arranged in ,airs vonsaid supports, a trough arranged under each tier of supports and underthe adjacent ends of the trays of each pair so as to catch liquid fromboth thereof, said trays each having lateral flange members forsupporting liquid containers above the bottoms thereof.

Q. A rack of the character' described coniprising a suitable framestructure having tiers `of tray supports, trays arranged in pairs onsaid supports, a trough arranged under cach tier of supports and underthe adjacent ends of the trays of each pair so as to catch liquid fromboth thereof, and flange members projecting laterally from the sides ofthe trays, said flange members having recesses to form a seat for aliquid container.

3. A rack of the character described coinprising a suitable framestructure having tiers of tray supports, trays arranged in pairs on saidsupports, a. trough arranged under each tier of supports and under theadjacent ends of the trays of each pair, the end portion of each traybottom adjacent the trough being inclined to facilitate draining `of thetray into the trough by tilting.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

FRANK D. BRGDERICK.

